Eugenia Victoria Hotel at Playa del Ingles

Eugenia Victoria Hotel on Gran Canaria Ave. and Cafe de Paris

Pool area at Eugenia Victoria Hotel

Through this pictorial focus on Eugenia Victoria Hotel, readers will get an impression of what a stay here is like and the hotel’s services and facilities. I’m staying here almost five weeks while visiting the island of Gran Canaria. One of the first things I wrote about upon my arrival here in Playa del Ingles was the Vital Wellness Centre here at Eugenia Victoria. The reason being that after a long flight from Canada, I was certainly in need of rest and relaxation. You can read about this by going to my blog entry entitled Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands in the February archive. When you’re staying this length of time in any location, a big priority is the quality of the food. If the food’s not up to par, there’s sure to be a mutiny! I opted for the half-board option at Eugenia Victoria which means that you have your breakfast and supper included in your hotel stay.

Cafe de Paris

It was a good decision because when lunch time rolls around, I often found myself away from the hotel, visiting other towns, walking on the beach or otherwise out and about.When out and about you also have the option of trying different restaurants for a quick bite, thus getting to know some of the local eating establishments. This is how I got to know Cafe de Paris, not far from Eugenia Victoria.

Selections at Cafe de Paris

 

Cafe de Paris is a chain with several locations throughout Playa del Ingles and it is very popular and for good reason. The quality of their offerings is excellent and fresh, from their various sandwich selections to delightful cakes, ice cream, and donuts, to one of my favourites, their Danish Pastries, which are tasty, flaky and not overly sweet.

Fresh oranges at Eugenia Victoria

 

I digress, back to Eugenia Victoria Hotel. The options for breakfast are huge and buffet style. From freshly squeezed orange juice, dried fruit, fruit salad, cereal, eggs, yogurt, bacon, ham, sausages, pancakes, crepes and more. Everyday there is a selection of fresh oranges, apples, watermelon, cantaloupe and bananas, with the same fruits available for suppertime as well.

Suppertime at Eugenia Victoria

 

And the supper time menu? It is vast and delicious. Eugenia Victoria can be assured there will be no mutiny associated with their food service. Supper is buffet style, so you are free to choose what you want and in the quantities that you want and even experiment a bit by going back to sample other dishes. The menu changes from day-to-day with many selections for every taste.

 

 

 

My salad selection at Eugenia Victoria

A salad bar offers a variety of fresh options. In general I would describe the choices, whether for breakfast or supper a Mediterranean- type diet. This type of diet is characterized by an abundance of fruits and vegetables, whole grains and legumes.

Cook grilling at Eugenia Victoria

 

The supper menu often features freshly grilled fish and poultry, and other choices of meat such as beef, lamb and pork, sometimes in special sauces, and often with local culinary influence. Since this hotel is children friendly, I often see several pasta options and pizza, two items you can never go wrong with for children.

 

 

 

Dessert selection at Eugenia Victoria

There is also a wide choice for dessert. If you like ice cream, you won’t go wrong here, there are about a dozen flavours to choose from. Cakes are another option, as well as fresh fruit. Coffee, tea and hot chocolate are available for both breakfast and suppertime. You can even get a shot glass of rum at suppertime. Wine or beer is extra.

Kiddy Pool at Eugenia Victoria

 

Children are welcome at Eugenia Victoria, evidenced by the organized activity programs for them and the outdoor facilities such as a kiddy pool, climbing structure, playhouse and mini-golf.

 

 

Poolside bar at Eugenia Victoria

For adults there is an indoor gym, shuffle board, outdoor whirlpools, a large swimming pool, the indoor wellness centre and several outdoor bars for lunch or a drink. There is live singing every night near the pool area, and indoors in the evening there are different kinds of entertainment from flamenco to singing, karaoke, to various other types of performances.

Inside Lounge area at Eugenia Victoria

Excursions around the island can be organized either by local hotel staff or by various tour companies that come into the hotel to explain their offerings. The beach is about a ten-minute walk away, or a hotel shuttle bus will take you there. Hotel staff are exceptionally friendly and helpful and deal with any concerns in a professional and polite manner. The guest list at Eugenia Victoria is a veritable list of the united nations, I have met people from Germany, Holland, Sweden,  England and Belgium.

Exploring Puerto Mogan, Venice of the Canaries

A bit of background on Puerto Mogan

Canal and bridge in Puerto Mogan

A network of canals link the marina to the harbour, thus the nickname “Little Venice” or “Venice of the Canaries.” This beautiful little resort town, located on the Western coast has several hotels, apartment rentals and up-market places for tourists to stay. It is also a fishing village with a lovely marina. A bylaw restricts any new building to be no higher than two stories, guarding against buildings which would restrict the view of the waterfront.

My day in Puerto Mogan

Today, Friday, is market day in Puerto Mogan and it attracts tourists from all over the island. I caught a bus from Playa del Ingles for just over four Euros and it was packed! I was lucky to get a seat as the ride there was about 30 minutes.

Ricami Veronica Shop

 

As well as the huge market, there are many shops spread throughout Puerto Mogan selling all manner of goods from clothing, hats, beach wear, baskets, high-end name brand clothing and souvenirs.  An interesting local speciality shop, Ricami Veronica, personalizes items such as towels, aprons and baby clothes either with a name or a phrase, and you can watch as your item is being embroidered.

 

 

Author with Sandy, owner of The Irish Tavern

Facing the marina you’ll find a large number of restaurants, many of them offering up fresh, delicious seafood. Puerto Mogan is reputed for its seafood. But you’ll also find many types of restaurants along this stretch including one called The Irish Tavern, where the owner, Sandy, offers up a varied menu including Irish stew, lasagna, home-made soups and what I love, her homemade desserts, some with an Irish twist.

Fruit Crumble at Irish Tavern

 

I knew this restaurant from having visited it last year and knew I’d get something, light, homemade and tasty. I had a hearty chicken soup with noodles and for dessert, a scrumptious fruit crumble with ice cream.

 

 

Beautiful Bougainvillea

 

What I love about Puerto Mogan is the upbeat yet relaxed feeling as one explores this little town with it colourful bougainvillea covering archways and climbing over white stucco buildings offering a vivid contrast.

 

An intriguing “find” in Puerto Mogan was a wall of relief artwork that captured the day-to-day life of local people called “El Paseo de Mis Padres” that translates to “The Passage of my Parents” that I found so charming. I’ve reproduced photos that I took of that relief work here.

I returned to Playa del Ingles on the 2:45 pm bus which was also crowded. It seems that for most people, four hours was just right to shop at the market, have a bit of lunch and walk around this scenic town

Gran Canaria to Tenerife

A Bit About Tenerife Island

It is the largest and most populated island in the Canary Islands and boasts the most number of tourist visits annually. It has the highest peak (often covered in snow during the winter months) in all of Spain, Mount Teide. The last time it erupted was in 1909. Mount Tiede can be seen from Gran Canaria on clear days.

Many of Tenerife’s resorts are in the South and West Coasts, and for good reason. This area is the sunniest, warmest and driest part of the island.

Tenerife is an island of micro climates, something I discovered when I visited Santa Cruz, in the North, the capital of Tenerife, and nearby La Laguna 12 kilometres away. These two municipalities experience quite different climates—La Laguna gets twice the amount of rainfall as Santa Cruz and is considerably cooler. Interestingly, “laguna” means lagoon in English. I sure felt like I was in a lagoon when I visited La Laguna—you’ll see why when I explain my visit there.

Gran Canaria to Tenerife

Fred Olson Catamaran at Agaete

This should be exciting, I thought, a trip from Gran Canaria to Tenerife on a catamaran! So, I’m up by 5:45 am to be picked up by a bus to take me and several others to Agaete. Agaete is the port on the West cost of Gran Canaria where we board the Fred Olson catamaran, a catamaran that seems very new and modern. A bar on board supplied some much needed coffee. We leave at 8:30. The one-hour and fifteen-minute crossing wasn’t particularly rough, but I was still glad to have taken a gravol before boarding. I sat at the front of the boat for the view, but it’s here that one feels the impact of any rough seas the most, there were a few good waves, but on the whole it was a smooth crossing.

Port at Tenerife

Once in Santa Cruz on Tenerife Island, I stopped at a tourist kiosk for information on Santa Cruz, and how to get to La Laguna, described as a charming and historic town with many pedestrian walkways.

 

 

 

Fruit and Vegetable Market

I started my adventure in Santa Cruz, armed with a map and a suggested route that would take me to the Museum of Nature and Man, a museum that was a must-see for me, since it has an extensive collection of artifacts and information on the culture of the Guanches, Tenerife’s indigenous peoples. Along the way, I passed Plaza San Francisco, pedestrian walkways, visited the local market with a wide array of fruit, vegetables, take-away food and lovely flowers.

And just in front of the market were two sculptures, one honouring the local fisherman of Tenerife, and the other of a woman carrying a basket of jugs on her head. Sculptures appear to be a Canarian tradition, as they are seen in many towns I’ve visited. I passed the iconic Opera House, then on to the Museum of Nature and Man. It was very impressive indeed with many artifacts and much history related to the Gaunaches, but explanations were only in Spanish. A lunch break at the museum was a real find: a coffee, freshly squeezed orange juice and ham and cheese sandwich was only three and half Euros.

Now on to La Laguna. I was quite eager to do this trip because I particularly enjoy visiting charming, historic towns. La Laguna’s historic centre was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999. Its history goes back to the Guanches, the indigenous people of Tenerife; the site of La Laguna once belonged to one of nine Guanche kingdoms before the Spanish conquest in 1494.

Colourful Tram

A fun and scenic way to get to La Laguna from Santa Cruz is by tramway, a ride that takes 45 minutes because of the many stops along the 12-kilometre route. I bought my ticket, but once on the tramway you’re supposed to validate it, of course being new to this I couldn’t get the machine to accept my ticket. Oh well, I thought, at least I have a ticket. They do spot checks on the tram to ensure ticket validation, and it wasn’t long before a conductor asked for my ticket. Luckily I had kept it. When he noted that it wasn’t validated, I explained that I had tried to do it unsuccessfully. “No problemo,” he said, he validated it for me and handed it back. Whew…first hurdle crossed.

Laguna’s Historic Centre

Well, I got to La Laguna and it was pouring rain and really cool! The micro climate in Tenerife in action. I had just left Santa Cruz where it was cloudy but warm and now just a short distance away, the climate is very different. Luckily I had brought my umbrella, a fairly warm jacket and walking shoes rather than the open toed sandals I usually wore while on Gran Canaria.

I started out to find the historic core of the town. Have you ever felt, well, vulnerable and confused as a traveller in a foreign land? This is an instance where I have to admit I did (okay, it’s not the first time). You’re in an unfamiliar place, with limited knowledge of the local language, chilled from the cold, and there’s heavy rain threatening to soak you through, and a wind strong enough to pull your umbrella inside out. I’ve come all this way to see the historic centre, and by gosh that’s what I’m going to do, it’s what travellers do. Finally, I have in my sights a local police car. Well, I thought, I’ll ask them, they must know the area. I must have looked quite a sight because they immediately invited me into the police car and to take me there! The kindness of people still exists. I find it more often than not.

Wet in Laguna

So in the pouring rain I found the historic centre and took a few photos as proof of it and the pouring rain. I got back on the tram and headed back to Santa Cruz to walk around the central commercial area, purchase a few souvenirs and have a hot cup of coffee.

 

 

 

Interestingly, back in Santa Cruz, it had rained a bit, but not nearly with the same intensity as at La Laguna, and by the time I was back the sky was already clearing—proof yet again of the micro climate, but one where cows use umbrellas.

 

 

 

 

On the way back to the port I was greeted by the most beautiful rainbow and a clearing sky. The journey on the catamaran back to Gran Canaria was a smoother one. Back at Eugenia Victoria Hotel in Playa del Ingles I arrived just in time to have supper.

Playa del Ingles to Maspalomas

An Invigorating Beach Walk

Playa del Ingles Beach

A stay at Playa Del Ingles or the translation, “Englishman’s Beach” wouldn’t be complete without a walk along a long stretch of beach of approximately five Kilometres either to Faro de Maspalomas from Playa del Ingles or going in the reverse direction. I’ve done this invigorating walk both ways and it is a total delight and great exercise. It can on occasion be quite windy, but usually there’s a light sea breeze, just enough to cool you from the heat of the day. You’ll encounter many people on this walk, in fact I’ve never taken this walk in solitude, that being said this stretch of beach is very wide so there is always lots of space and you never feel crowded.

Maspalomas Dunes

Dabble your toes in the surf, stop for a refreshment along the way at one of the several beach shacks, or rent an umbrella and lounge chair. This area is also known for its nude beaches, a common phenomenon in Europe. A highlight of this walk are the Maspalomas Dunes that you’ll encounter along the way, a unique attraction of Playa del Ingles. You’d think you’re in a microcosm of the Sahara. A walk through them makes for an out of the ordinary experience.

Maspalomas Lighthouse

Even when you’re quite a distance from Faro de Maspalomas, you’ll see its landmark lighthouse peeping up from the dunes.  It’s a still-active 19^th century lighthouse, 56 metres high with a light beam that can be seen 19 nautical miles away. Once there you’ll find tourist shops selling clothing and souvenirs, many fine restaurants, coffee shops, a designer and name brand shopping complex and luxury hotels. If shopping and dining are on your agenda at Faro de Maspalomas, local buses or a taxi will take you back to Playa del Ingles. But if you’re still feeling energetic, a boardwalk continues on from Faro de Maspalomas to Meloneras Beach for another kilometre or so.

Author relaxing at Maspalomas

The area of Faro de Maspalomas and Playa del Ingles is located in the municipality of San Bartolome de Tirajana at the very southern tip of Gran Canaria Island. In this vicinity, you will find no hotels built on the ocean front. It’s heartening to see that good ecological planning is in force, particularly in the Maspalomas Dunes which have been protected as a nature reserve since 1897. They cover an area of 404 hectares.

Exploring Aguimes on Gran Canaria

The Charming Town of Aguimes

The charming, historic town of Aguimes, founded in 1486, is described as a “traditional Canarian Hill Town” The feeling one gets as one walks its winding streets is one of relaxation and tranquility. Its historic main square and restored  buildings are lovely.

 

Didn’t know I could ride a camel in Aguimes

But what sets this town apart are its intriguing sculptures, spread throughout the historic centre and unexpectedly greeting you as you round a corner or popping up when you least expect to see one. Some are whimsical and others demonstrate a more serious theme. Artisan workshops,  churches, museums, restaurants and sidewalk cafes all add up to make a visit to Aguimes a pleasant one and one of discovery.

Lovely street in Aguimes

The Guayadeque Ravine

Not far from Aguimes is the Guayadeque Ravine, a valley of rugged beauty that is recognized as one of the most important aboriginal settlements of cave dwelling people that goes back 1,500 years ago, and which constitutes a part of the Canaries’ fascinating history. Caves back then were located on sheer rock faces and only accessible by treacherous pathways.

 

The Tagoror Cave Resaurant

Today, some caves have been converted into restaurants, making for an unusual dining experience such as the Tagoror Restaurant, carved into the side of the mountain and offering delicious traditional cuisine. If you’re looking for absolute peace and quiet you could also rent a cave as accommodation. The valley has been declared a National Monument and Cultural Heritage Site.

Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands

Relaxing at Eugenia Victoria Hotel’s Vital Wellness Centre

Vital Wellness Centre

After an overnight flight from Canada, several hours wait in an airport and a connecting flight in Zurich to Gran Canaria, what could better restore one’s equilibrium than time spent in the Wellness Centre at Eugenia Victoria Hotel? What a treat it was. As I descended the stairs into the Wellness Centre, the calming atmosphere was already starting to work its magic. I found several pools and whirlpools, varying in temperature, some with soothing jets, some more vigorous to knock out the tension from stiff and aching muscles.

Entrance to Dead Sea Salt Pool

Warm, soothing salt water in a “Dead Sea” pool in a dimly lit cave-like atmosphere offered a very enjoyable experience. No possibility of sinking here. Two saunas with varying degrees of heat ensure you’ll sweat out those toxins, restoring the skin to a healthy glow. Just outside the entrance to one sauna are several showers offering a variety of jets or a gentle “misting”—your choice. Still wanting to decompress? The centre is equipped with a softly lit relaxation room with lounging beds to ensure the ultimate in repose. To ensure a tranquil atmosphere, signs are posted throughout the centre asking for silence.  Many spa services are offered here including several types of massage and skin cleansing techniques.

Canary Islands

An Intro to the Canaries

Lots of lovely beaches on Gran Canaria

The Canaries are an archipelago of seven main islands, with Gran Canaria, where I’m currently visiting, the third largest and one of the most popular for tourists. The islands are situated about 100 kilometres West off the coast of Morocco and are reputed to have one of the best climates and the most sunshine. Gran Canaria has many attractions including long sandy beaches where you can walk for miles, Palmitos Park, water sports, sand dunes in Playa del Ingles, camel and horseback riding…and much more that I’ll describe first hand as I visit this tourist Mecca.

I started my journey to the Canaries in Ottawa with a flight to Montreal and from there had a Swiss Air flight into Zurich lasting about seven and half hours I highly recommend this airline from the point of view of service, quality of food and friendly staff. Would you believe it? They use stainless steel cutlery! My next connecting flight was from Zurich to Gran Canaria on award-winning Edelweiss Air.It’s immediately apparent why. On this fairly short flight of just over  four hours, they immediately and cheerfully serve you snacks and a beverage, followed by a delicious hot lunch…and then good quality coffee or tea..at no extra charge. I was so tired from my overnight flight that I started to snooze after the serving of tea and coffee. When I awoke I discovered the stewardess had left me another sweet treat on the arm of my chair, not wanting me to miss out because I had fallen asleep.

From Las Palmas airport, I took a local bus right into Playa del Ingles for the cost of about six Euros. I was dropped off close to my hotel, Eugenia Victoria where I’m staying for a month. I chose the half-board option that includes breakfast and supper, and payed a few Euros more to have a room on the eighth floor, on a corner, so I get a nice cross breeze. At Eugenia Victoria, there’s a rooftop lounging area, several bars, both indoor and outside, a huge outdoor swimming pool and a magnificent wellness centre with various “waterfalls”, whirlpools, saunas and even a “dead sea” style salt pool. More on this to come